Hannibal: “Contorno” Review

Hannibal Season 3 Episode 5

A brutal episode of ‘Hannibal’ sees the net continue to tighten around Hannibal as his old friends draw ever closer.

NBC

“BOWELS IN OR BOWELS OUT?”

Note: The following review goes into detail about the episode. SPOILER ALERT!

The first four episodes of Season 3 have been like a bit of a dance. All of our main characters have kept in motion, circling around each other without ever making contact. “Contorno” broke that pattern, and it broke it in brutal fashion. I believe Season 2 began with a flash forward to the fight between Hannibal and Jack that nearly cost Jack his life. That exciting opening set the tone for the whole season, with those events looming large over every episode. We knew what the season was leading up to, and it was only a matter of time before we got there. Season 3 is different. We don’t really know where anything is going right now, and that’s what makes moments like these stand out even more.

Jack beat the holy hell out of Hannibal here. This wasn’t an ordinary beating that would result in Hannibal being brought in. Jack was straight up out to kill Hannibal. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, for Hannibal to twist things around once again and turn the tables on Jack, but it never came. Jack was relentless, throwing Hannibal through glass and using everything available to him to inflict more pain. For a minute there I wasn’t even certain if Hannibal would be able to get away, but he was at his quick-thinking best and managed to use his latest victim’s corpse to shimmy to safety. He’s not in great shape after that brawl, however, and Jack is certain to be right behind him.

So Pazzi ended up biting the dust—in a very brutal way—and I especially liked Alana’s role in all of it. Her new partnership with Verger is incredibly interesting. She knew that Hannibal would end up killing Pazzi, but she was willing to stand there and let it happen if it meant that they would be closer to catching Hannibal. As I mentioned before, Alana was the one who was probably fooled the most by Hannibal, and it’s great to see her out to get him in such a primal quest for vengeance. Keeping her mind on the task at hand must be the only way she can spend that amount of time in Verger’s presence. It’ll be interesting to see how much longer Alana can follow this path, but I’m hoping it’ll continue for a while longer.

I love the dynamic that Will and Hannibal have this season, even though they’re yet to meet face to face again since the end of Season 2’s finale. They’re seemingly set on a collision course, but the outcome of such a meeting is up in the air. We already know Hannibal has plans to kill Will, and now Will feels like his only option is to kill Hannibal. As long as Hannibal remains alive, he has power over Will, and Will can never truly be sure of his own actions if it continues like that. Chiyoh remains the wildcard in this situation. It seemed like she would be joining Will on his quest to find Hannibal, but then she went and tossed Will off that train. It’s still very hard to get a read on her right now, so I can’t tell whether she wants to have Hannibal all for herself or whether he’s still controlling her.

THE BREAKDOWN

The characters of Hannibal danced a bloody dance this week, with Jack and Hannibal facing off in a ferociously one-sided bout. Jack beat the holy hell out of Hannibal, and it was only the doctor’s quick thinking that got him out of there alive. It’s going to be interesting to see what Hannibal’s next move is following on from this, with Jack sure to following close behind him. Other characters continue to circle around and get ever closer to Hannibal, but it’s only a matter of time before more of his old friends pay him a visit.

What did you think of the fight between Hannibal and Jack? Tweet me @OldSnake24. And be sure to follow us @YouNerded!

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Michael Spring is a staff writer for YouNerded.com. If he's not playing Metal Gear or watching some excellent TV show, he's more than likely asleep. For some witty banter and the occasional rant about football, you can follow him @OldSnake24 on Twitter